Monday newspaper round-up: Ofgem, first-time buyers, M&A, Premier Foods

A champion of price caps and a critic of suppliers’ behaviour has been chosen to lead the UK’s energy regulator, Ofgem. In an effort to toughen up the watchdog, which has been criticised for being soft on energy firms, regulatory economist Martin Cave has been selected as the regulator’s new chair just months before it is due to impose a price cap on energy bills. – Guardian

A typical single first-time buyer in London will have to save for 17 years – until 2035 – to raise enough cash for a 15% deposit on a home. That is up from the 15 years recorded in both 2008 and 2013, despite steep house price falls in parts of London since the Brexit vote two years ago. Across England and Wales, the average single first-time purchaser would need just over 10 years to save up a deposit of that size, according to a report from the estate agent Hamptons International. – Guardian

Morrisons is bringing back traditional brown paper bags for groceries as the latest high street brand to join the war on plastic. The paper bags will replace plastic for loose fruit and vegetables in stores, while Morrisons will also encourage customers to bring in their own containers for its butcher and fishmonger counters. – Telegraph

Companies that opened their M&A war chests this year have been left ­disappointed after the market recorded its worst quarterly performance in at least 10 years, research shows. The global deal frenzy is expected to hit a post-crisis high this year after cheap debt, Donald Trump’s tax cuts and improved market sentiment encouraged deal-hungry businesses to go on a shopping spree. But a study published today finds that global M&A performance is in freefall just as deal numbers close in on record levels. – Telegraph

The Government is to introduce new rules for companies working on public contracts to clean up the sector and prevent a future collapse like Carillion. Private sector companies will have to show taxpayers how money is being spent and publish data for cutting the gender pay gap and improving ethnic minority representation if they want to win contracts. - Telegraph

Hedge fund investors have made a £1 billion bet against WPP as the advertising agency grapples with the fallout from the exit of Sir Martin Sorrell. The percentage of WPP shares on loan, a proxy for short selling, has surged over the past year from close to zero to more than 6 per cent of its share capital, figures from IHS Markit show. – The Times

The chief executive of the company behind Mr Kipling cakes and Oxo stock cubes has “overseen five years of failure” and driven the company into a “zombie-like state”, according to its second largest shareholder. Premier Foods is facing calls to sack Gavin Darby as its boss and replace him in the interim with Alastair Murray, its chief financial officer. – The Times